08/25/2026
Welcome to the Jungle, Slash's groundsnake! 🐍
Slash, aka Saul Hudson, is probably best known as the guitarist from Guns N' Roses, but there's more to Slash than just his music! 🎸⚡️
He's also a lifelong reptile lover and an avid supporter of zoos and museums. And now, he's the namesake of the newly discovered Lielaphis slashi: Slash's groundsnake! 🏛️
This 28-inch-long reddish-brown snake comes from the forests of New Guinea, an island located north of Australia that is divided between the countries of Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. 🌏
Snakes in this genus often have large teeth in the back of their mouths, which New Guinea groundsnakes may use to grab onto and eat small, slippery-scaled lizards and the eggs of other reptiles. 🥚
While Guns N' Roses has been called "the most dangerous band in the world," L. slashi does not produce any venom that could seriously harm a person. 🥁
While Slash’s groundsnake doesn’t pose a threat to humans, human activity could spell disaster for this snake and its fellow forest-dwelling creatures' habitat. 🌳
Recognizing and describing new species like this one is an important step for us to better understand how ecosystems work and how everything fits into the environment. In order to conserve and protect living things, we first have to learn about them. 🔎
